Jian Liye and Cheng Chao also heard it. They could feel the tremors even from a great distance. The sheer scale of the explosion reminded Cheng Chao of Qin Qinghuai's earlier mention of Jian Li going up the mountain, and his heart pounded. He couldn't help but feel that Jian Li was involved, and his expression darkened.
"Uncle Li, let's go take a look too."
The streets were in chaos, and they looked disheveled and inconspicuous. Taking advantage of the confusion, they followed the crowd onto a bus heading towards Xishan.
The commotion was heard throughout half of the capital. It wasn't something anyone could cover up. The location wasn't some remote mountain or someone's back mountain, so it wasn't a place that could be blocked off. Besides, although the area was secluded, it wasn't completely deserted. Some daring people would come to gather firewood and dig for wild vegetables. So even though they had reacted quickly and mobilized people, a number of fast-moving people had already gathered at the foot of the mountain and halfway up. Cheng Chao and Jian Liye mingled with this group and quietly followed them up the mountain.
After surveying the scene, he discreetly blended into the crowd and was driven down the mountain with them. Only when they reached a secluded spot did Jian Liye excitedly clench his fists together.
"I have to say, who is this brave man who was able to find this place and devise this plan? He has guts, it's so satisfying."
"It's a pity. There must have been a lot of good stuff inside. It's all wasted after this explosion."
A brave warrior? A complete waste of time?
Cheng Chao's lips twitched as he looked at the 'naive' Jian Liye. He opened his mouth and said, "If you knew that this strong woman was the delicate and soft girl you thought she was, what would you think?"
Yes, looking at the cleanly destroyed scene, Cheng Chao vaguely guessed that it was his restless girl who had done it.
"Uncle Li, how about we take another closer look?"
In other words, if someone's explosion site only contains soil, rocks, and debris, with nothing else at all, who would believe that there's something in the cave?
This method, to be honest, was very familiar to him. Wasn't it exactly the same as that time in the Northwest? The outside was completely collapsed, but the inside was spotless.
He's starting to wonder what good stuff his sister has gotten.
Jian Liye wasn't stupid. He was taken aback by the obvious hidden meaning in Cheng Chao's words and immediately went to check on him, keeping to himself.
The train roared away from Beijing, completely unaware of Cheng Chao's inner turmoil and shock. On their return journey, they unfortunately encountered a group of educated youth going to the countryside on the same train and couldn't get sleeper berths. The couple and their child bought a row of three seats, placing the child near the window and sitting opposite each other. The couple had the child and the small table in the middle, which was safe enough.
Before getting on the bus, the couple made sure their child ran around and played for a while. Once on the bus, well, he was so tired he fell asleep.
I'm reminded of a joke from later years. It was about a young couple traveling with their child on a high-speed train. To prevent the child from crying, they prepared a bag of edamame in advance. The child started peeling the beans as soon as they boarded the train and didn't stop until they got off. They didn't even have a chance or time to cry. It makes me laugh just thinking about it.
Qin Qinghuai cast a questioning look at him. What just happened? Was there something funny about it?
He leaned forward slightly and whispered the joke to himself.
"Once she wakes up, why don't we give it a try? From now on, let her peel beans when we take the bus."
Qin Qinghuai was somewhat speechless.
"Who came up with this idea? No, I should say, how much of a fuss must this child have caused to force the parents to come up with this method?"
Looking at his little one sleeping soundly, the father's protective filter was still quite strong, and he immediately denied it.
"Don't worry, my daughter is very well-behaved, she doesn't need it."
He simply pursed his lips; his own kid didn't seem to be that unruly after all.
The carriage was quite crowded, with many people holding standing tickets. Even next to their row of seats, several other people were squeezed together. As the train moved, it swayed back and forth, causing them to bump into the backrests from time to time. Sometimes, they would even have physical contact with people sitting on the outside. Normally, they would be more careful, but in this situation, they could only try to be mindful and avoid it as much as possible.
Normally, Qin Qinghuai would have given up his seat immediately without hesitation. But now that his wife and children were here, he was not only a soldier but also the pillar of the family. Although he felt a little guilty about his uniform, he still sat down steadily.
With his imposing presence and a stern expression, he didn't look like someone to be trifled with, so no one bothered him.
Halfway through the journey, people got on and off the train, and the seats next to them were all taken by different people. The atmosphere in the carriage was no longer as harmonious as when the train first departed. After sitting for a while, people regained their strength and started to have more energy. People crowded around, grabbed seats, stepped on each other's feet, and unruly children came out. The grandmothers of these unruly children also started causing trouble.
The little one had just woken up and drunk milk. Still half asleep, he sat in his father's lap, munching on a biscuit. Watching the commotion around him, he was startled by a sudden scream. Qin Qinghuai immediately patted him gently to comfort him, while Jian Dan frowned and turned to look.
An old woman was with a boy and a girl who looked to be in her teens. The old woman and the boy were squeezed into a long row of seats, while the little girl stood to the side, gripping the back of the seat tightly, and carrying a rather large bundle in her hand.
The contrast was striking: the boy was chubby and his clothes had no patches, while the girl was dark-skinned and thin, her little hands like dry twigs. The old woman would scold her from time to time, pouring water and fetching food, serving her like a little maid.
The boy next to him, presumably a former educated youth, was eating a steamed bun when he suddenly became upset. He threw down his wild vegetable bun and started playing around.
"I want to eat steamed buns! I want to eat steamed buns too! You good-for-nothing, hurry up and snatch those steamed buns for me!"
The old lady didn't find anything wrong with the overbearing tone of the command, and took it for granted, slapping him across the face.
"Hurry up, didn't you hear my darling craving steamed buns?"
The little girl seems to have relatively sound values; it's a dilemma.
"Grandma, those are other people's steamed buns. If we try to steal them, wouldn't that be like being a bandit?"
The old woman slapped the little girl, and her face immediately swelled up.
"You good-for-nothing, you can't do anything right. Just do what I tell you to do. Bao'er already said so, so go. If you can't get it, then beg her, kowtow to her. If you still can't get it, then you're incompetent. I bet you'll make Bao'er go hungry, or I'll beat you to death."
They were talking loudly, and the people nearby were shocked. They were clearly not to be trifled with, and no one wanted to cause trouble for themselves. So even though they knew what the old woman was going to do, no one stopped her.
However, the old lady didn't expect that the educated youth she thought was an easy target turned out to be a fiery one. The girl had barely said a few words when the educated youth let out a loud "Aww!"
“I want to find the train conductor, I want to find the train attendant, I want to report that there are landlords and rich people exploiting us educated youth sent to the countryside, wanting to gain without working, and robbing the property of the educated youth sent to the countryside.”
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